[Jeff K.]

It can never be said enough, communication is one of the biggest factors. If no one is talking, no one is knowing what the other person is thinking. A driver that is argumentative also doesn't help. I remember my freshman year, as operator, the driver kept yelling at the coach to shut up, which was not his job...we weren't very successful. The coach role is quite possibly the most important part because you may have an amazing driver and an equally amazing operator, but if there is no connection they'll just fall apart and be out of sync.

Both also need to keep up with each other. The slowest person will bring the team down. The whole drive team needs to work together to understand each other better, even if it's just at a few team meals, understanding each other to get a connection helps a lot.